Caramel Apple Sticky Buns

Posted in cake by a little Swiss, a little Canadian

I got the inspiration for these sticky buns from the October 2017 edition of the Canadian Living magazine. I’ve been waiting impatiently to try them. A pretty sticky bun situation, with an apple and pecan filling and sticky caramel made with apple juice and sugar.

As always I’ve made these completely refined sugar free, but I will write down the original ingredients as well. These are best enjoyed freshly baked and still warm.

Caramel Apple Sticky Buns

Yields: 12 buns

Dough:

3 cups all-purpose flour, I used white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar, I used honey
11/2 tsp quick-rising (instant) dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter
2/3 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten

Glaze and Filling:

4 apples
1 cup brown sugar, I used coconut sugar
1/4 cup butter, cubed
2 cups chopped pecans
1 cup apple butter*
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger

To make the dough:

-In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, add milk and heat until warm, (not hot). Pour milk mixture into flour mixture, add egg. Stir until combined. Turn onto floured work surface and knead dough until soft and elastic. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease all over then cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.

Glaze and Filling: Line a 13- x 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.

-Meanwhile (optional peel) grate apples to measure 4 cups; strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing on solids with back of spoon to extract juice. Reserve grated apple.

-In a small saucepan, bring apple juice and brown sugar to boil over medium-high heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add butter; cook, stirring for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Reserving 3 tbsp, spread remaining glaze evenly over bottom of prepared pan; sprinkle with 1 cup of the pecans, In a bowl stir together apple butter, reserved 3 tbsp glaze, cinnamon and ginger.

Assembly:

-Preheat oven to 350F/180C.

-On a slightly floured surface roll out dough to a 16-x 12-inch rectangle. Leaving 1/2-inch border on 1 long edge, spread apple butter mixture evenly over dough; sprinkle reserved apple and pecans over top. Starting at the long edge opposite border, tightly roll up dough, pinching seams to seal.

-With a serrated knife, cut into 12 buns; arrange, cut side up, in prepared pan. Cover with a damp tea towel; let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

-Bake until golden brown and buns sound hollow when gently tapped, 30-35 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes before serving.

*I’ve made these without the apple butter, because I did not have any at the time.

-Also I found the sticky buns were not really sticky after baking, maybe it depends how much juice you’ll get from the apples. I’ve made an additional simple maple glaze: In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup of maple syrup and 1 tsp cinnamon to a boil, then reduce to low heat, stirring until slightly thickens; add the butter, stir until melted, remove from heat and pour over baked buns.